The Five Levels of Friendship
by Modul
Summary: ***Reviews contain spoilers*** There are different levels of Friendship. Exactly which level does that put Allen and Lenalee? AllenxLenalee. Lite LavixLenalee. Centered around Lenalee.
1. Morning

**Author's Notes: **

All right! Let's do this! Okay, this is my first fanfic for D. Gray-Man. My other three stories are for Pokemon, so I doubt any of you might've read them. I mean, I never came across a writer on this site that have written stories for D. Gray-Man _and_ Pokemon. Because of that, I got nervous writing this because it was for a whole new audience and fanbase.

The scene in the beginning can be found in chapter 105 in the manga. I pretty much based the dialogue around the scanlations, but changed it a bit.

One more thing, I dropped the Japanese suffixes. I hope that won't be a problem.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own D. Gray-Man.

**D. Gray-Man**

The group of four jumped through the door to escape the room doomed for destruction. The door led to what seemed like an endless pit of shadows. They just kept falling and falling, with no knowledge of what awaited them at the bottom. One of the four, a girl, was pouring out tears of anguish. Not for the sake of her _own_ life, but for the comrade they've left behind in the crumbling room from once they came.

"Lenalee! Don't cry, Lenalee!" That was Allen's voice. He was trying to reach for her hand, so they wouldn't separate.

"Krory! We have to go back for him!" Lenalee cupped her hands over her ears to try and shake off reality. The feeling was overwhelming. The feeling of losing someone precious. Like a piece of your world has been destroyed along with it. "Stop this! I don't want to lose anymore people!"

"Lenalee! Listen to me!" Allen was obligated to scream. Lenalee was covering her ears.

"No more…please…"

Allen finally got a hold of her hand. He brought the two of them closer together so that they were falling evenly. "I promise you, Lenalee. Everyone will return home safely. Kanda and Krory, too. Everyone."

"But how? Tell me how…"

Allen bedded his palms onto her cheeks. He wanted her to read his lips clearly. "What happened to the strong Lenalee I know? After all, aren't you like a big sister?"

_Sisterrr…sisterrr…sisterrr…sisterrr…_

Soon all images faded into the shadows. Everything was black.

.::.

Lenalee opened her eyes.

"What that just a dream?" She barely let off a sound, for she was catching her breath from the adrenaline. "No. I remember now. It was real."

The scenario actually happened awhile ago. But her dreams repeated the event just as it occurred back then.

The word 'sister' was stuck in her head. It began to echo again. _Sisterrr…sisterrr…sisterrr…sisterrr…_

She tried to shake the thought out, but it was no use. "Not again…"

It was morning and she was on her bed. The walls. They were so white. There was no need for the window that hovered over her head, beaming a ray of sunlight directly onto her forehead and parts of her eye. She was in the mood of sleeping for just a little bit more since it was only six o' clock, but that troublesome light kept peeking its way into her eyelid that it was impossible to sleep any further. She gathered enough strength to pull herself up into a sitting position before releasing a quiet yawn. Then she stood up, looking dumbly at the mess of her unmade bed. In an attempt to fix it, she collapsed on the mattress face-first.

She made a sarcastic chuckle. "Why am I like this? I can't go to sleep, but at the same time, I can't stay awake."

Lenalee's legs were still recovering from her battle with that level 3 Akuma. But her leg injuries were the last thing on her mind. On her mind, she was only thinking of Allen…and the others who were also injured on the Ark. A great deal of remorse took her over for the fact that, although she had saved Anita's ship from the Akuma, she had been no help on the Ark. She would constantly degrade herself, saying it was all _her_ fault this happened because she was the one targeted by the Earl. She couldn't help it; it was in her character to feel that way.

.::.

Lenalee was in the kitchen making coffee for the Science Division. She did this almost everyday as if it was a second job for her. But seeing her friends smile after taking a sip of the coffee she made was worth the effort.

She was walking down the hallway, on her way to the lab, carrying a tray of hot coffee. Her eyes drooped down almost completely before she just missed crashing into a wall.

"That was close." Due to her fatigue, she spoke in such a dull fashion. "I better drink some coffee before I _really_ crash into a wall."

She grabbed a mug that displayed the picture of a pink bunny and drank the whole thing with no regards. The coffee seemed to cool down a bit, so the liquid didn't burn her tongue.

"Lenalee?" That voice. It was coming from the library.

"Allen?"

"Lenalee? Is that you?"

It was definitely Allen. He had such a sweet voice. It was like a piece of innocence took refuge in his throat. That's what his voice was…innocent.

She entered the library with excitement. "Allen?"

"Um no?" The voice answered back quizzically.

Lenalee turned her head in all sorts of directions until she finally pinpointed the source. "Lavi?"

"What's wrong? Were you expecting Allen?" Lavi was sitting alone at a table with a book on one hand and a sandwich in another. He finished the remaining chews in his mouth and then wiped his mouth with his sleeve. Then he began to stare at Lenalee with patience. He was waiting for a reply.

She suddenly felt bad for Lavi because she could read the fear of disappointment on his face. She gave a sigh because she _was_ disappointed in a way. "I don't think I've noticed it before…but Lavi has a sweet voice just like Allen's."

"Hmm? Did you say something?" Lavi and Lenalee shared the same room but they were still a great distance from each other. The library was pretty big.

"Nothing! Nothing at all!"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure." Lenalee looked at him sternly. _Lavi is acting a little…differently today._

"Okay, then." Lavi took another bite out of his sandwich and continued to flip through his book.

Lenalee stood there in an awkward situation. She stood there for about five minutes before realizing that the coffee was getting cold. "Um Lavi?"

Lavi put down his book once more. "Yes?"

"Aren't you the one that called my name?"

"Oh I'm sorry!" Lavi jumped out of his seat and ran over to her, only to apologize once more at a more appropriate distance. "Is that why you've been standing there all this time?"

"It's okay."

"How simple-minded of me…" Lavi was still feeling a bit guilty. "I saw you walk by and decided to just call out your name."

"Just call out my name?"

"Yeah, I guess it was impulse. I don't know."

Lenalee just giggled at him. "So, what are you doing?"

"Erm…just reading…"

Lenelee looked down at his hand, which held the half-eaten sandwich. Bread crumbs were dropping to the floor at an alarming rate. This made her nervous. "You know we're not supposed to bring food in here, don't you?"

"We're not?" Lavi took a glimpse of his sandwich and noticed the floor. "Oh crap!"

"Um would you like me to fetch a broom?"

"No thank you! That won't be necessary!" Lavi crouched down. He scooped the crumbs with his hands and gathered up a huge pile. Then he grabbed handfuls from the pile and dumped them into his shirt like a basket. After the floor was spotless and neat, he made his stride into the hallways. "What about that coffee you're holding, Lenalee? I don't want you to get in trouble."

"It's okay. I was just about to leave anyway."

Lavi passed her by but froze soon after. He turned back. "Lenalee?"

"Yeah?"

"You're hair is coming in nicely…"

"Thank--"

But Lavi stormed out of the library before she could properly thank him. Lenalee was about to leave as well until she noticed the book Lavi was reading had been left on the table. She was confused at the title. _How To Be More Like Your Best Friend_. _Written by Cedrick Apple._

"What a strange book…" She was expecting a book with historical records or something, him being a bookman after all. She was _way_ off.

She didn't feel she had the right to take a sneak peek inside it. She respected Lavi too much for that. It wasn't like it was a diary or anything, but there was no way of knowing how Lavi would react if he saw her snooping around the pages. So she decided to put the book back into its designated shelf and save Lavi the trouble.

"Let's see A…where are the A's…" She figured the book must belong to the A section. "There they are!"

She climbed up this huge ladder that led to near the roof of the room. She had to take each step cautiously because her legs were still healing. Once or twice she almost fell but courageously saved herself from being perished. It wasn't too hard to find the spot's location; it belonged in between two books, one by Sydney Archer and another by Anonymous.

That Anonymous book sort of caught her eye. It was a tiny book, one you could carry in your pocket. It also had a bright orange cover with purple text. She read the title off the spine. _The Five Levels of Friendship_. _Written by Anonymous._

"Levels?" That word striked her curiosity. _What do levels have to do with friendship?_ _When I hear the word 'level', I think of Akuma. _

She made her way carefully down the ladder. The orange book was now in her hands. _Why am I so interested in something like this?_

It couldn't have been more than 90 pages. Albeit there was a blanket of dust, you could tell that the book was written in this century. When she opened it, the hard-cover gave an annoying creaking sound. She skipped the introduction and went directly to chapter one. In the very beginning, there were no paragraphs. Instead, there was only this huge diagram that occupied the first two pages. It was entitled:

* * *

"The Five Levels of Friendship" Rundown (Read Left-to-Right)

**1. Speaking Terms -- 2. Associative Terms / Frequent Terms -- 3. Friendly Terms -- 4A. Emotionally Intertwined -- 5A. Brother-Sister Friendship**

**OR**

**1. Speaking Terms -- 2. Associative Terms / Frequent Terms -- 3. Friendly Terms -- 4B. Complimentary Terms -- 5B. Romantic Terms**

**Level 1. Speaking Terms (ST)**

This is the first stage to every friendship. The two people involved are not considered to be friends as of yet but rather mere acquaintances. Both people should at least know each other's names, though they do not have to call each other by a first name basis. They also might not see each other often. But when they do, they would welcome each other's presence with a smile or a hello. All friendships must start with this level before advancing any further.

**Level 2. Associative Terms / Frequent Terms (AT)**

This is the next stage to a friendship. This is where the two people involved see each other more often but usually not in one-on-one meetings. For example, you may see them because they are friends with your other friends. Or you might see them because you work together or get invited to the same parties. Nevertheless, the two still don't really know each other quite well though they might _want_ to know each other.

**Level 3. Friendly Terms (FT)**

This is the most common level where the two people 'stay put'. In this stage, the two could acknowledge each other as 'friends' without much hesitation. Also, they would know each other a whole lot more. Things such as where the person lives, what are the person's likes, what are the person's dislikes, how old is that person, etc. They would also see each other more often, sometimes arranging meetings on their own whim. Also, they might sometimes eat lunch together and share many laughs.

**Level 4A. Emotionally Intertwined (EI)**

This is where friendships start to become complex. This is only one of two level 4 variants that a friendship could possibly evolve into. This type of friendship usually happens with only your most cherished friend where you and that friend share an emotional moment. For example, if tragedy were to strike, the two people involved may cry together and/or try to comfort each other. A moment like that between two people would ensure a whole new level of closeness. If you have shared an emotional moment with a friend, consider yourself lucky because friends like these are hard to come by.

**Level 5A. Brother-Sister Friendship (BSF)**

This is the stage that comes after Emotionally Intertwined. After an emotional moment is shared, there is an intimacy that only a brother and sister can have. The two people involved will consider each other family. Secrets will be shared between the two. But the most important thing of all is that they will protect each other at all costs. Some friends may be overprotective at times, but that's just saying how much they care. Although it is called Brother-Sister Friendship, this still accounts for friendships between two boys or two girls.

**Level 4B. Complimentary Terms (CT)**

This stage comes after Friendly Terms. This stage is completely different from Emotionally Intertwined. In this stage, two people would give each other compliments; hence, the word 'complimentary'. Compliments show how much a person cares. At first, the compliments would be used to make conversation. But eventually, the compliments would slowly result in cheering up a friend or flattering a friend. When two people start to compliment each other, they stray off from being emotionally connected. Instead, they become more aloof with one another. They might also tease each other a bit more than they might with other friends. Not out of spite but to fool around.

**Level 5B. Romantic Terms (RT)**

This is the stage that comes after Complimentary Terms. After compliments are thrown both sides, the two people involved might evoke into this kind of friendship. They would become more passionate about their relationship, perhaps to the point of becoming inseparable. They would understand each other (much like being Emotionally Intertwined). They would usually want to be alone together most of the time, including for meals and other activities. They might fight a bit, but that's only natural. This is the strongest bond you could have with a person, but it's also the most fragile.

* * *

"Gee, I didn't know friendship was so complicated." This was coming from Lenalee, who some might say is an expert when it comes to friendship.

"I wonder what level friendship me and Allen are in. Hmm…" Then Lenalee slapped herself. _Why Allen? Out of all people, why did I think of Allen?_

She continued to read some more. She didn't stress on every word, but skimmed past the pages rather. She was getting sleepy again so she drank another mug of coffee with Johnny's name on it. After ten more minutes of reading, she drank one with Tapp's name on it. By the time she finished the last remaining sips, she suddenly realized that the science team was waiting for her delivery.

She stormed out of her seat, placed the book into her coat pocket, and carried the little coffee she had left to the science lab.

.::.

When she arrived, the door was already open. She stepped inside and the whole place was a mess. She couldn't see anybody because documents and forms took up every inch of the room. Those poor geeks must be buried in there somewhere.

"Hello?! Is anybody in here?!" Lenalee tried to weed them out by screaming.

"Lenalee!" Komui, the Head Officer of the Science Division, emerged out from a pile of papers and ran over to hug his sister. "Wake up everybody! Lenalee is here!"

The people of the Science Division all sprouted out from different places, running over to Lenalee for the coffee that they oh so desperately needed. It was pretty overwhelming for Lenalee. When everybody started running to her direction, her arms trembled and she accidentally tipped over some mugs off the tray.

Everybody in the Science Division froze.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Lenalee was squirming in panic. She hated to disappoint. "Here! There's still one left that didn't spill!"

The whole Science Division was filled with hope once again. Their voices all coincided. "So whose is it?"

She turned the mug so she could spot the name of who is belonged to. "It's Squad Leader Reever's."

The group of scientists were all moaning…except for Reever, that is.

"Come on, Squad Leader! Won't you share?!" Johnny was kneeling before him like a dog.

But Reever drank the whole thing without a second glance. "I would, but I'm all finished."

"You're a demon, Squad Leader! You hear me?!"

"Don't worry, it was already cold. It didn't taste that good anyway."

Lenalee, despite drinking three cups of coffee, was drifting back to sleep. Then, she woke up to the sound of Komui's voice.

"You barbarians!" Komui erupted into a being of pure rage. "Lenalee came all this way to bring us coffee and you guys don't bother saying thank you?! My, my, you guys call yourselves scientists?! Spoiled brats is more like it!"

Reluctantly, all the scientists said it together. "Thank you, Lenalee…"

"Now I want you guys to apolo--"

But Lenalee cut him off. "Brother, please stop…they don't have to thank me or apologize to me. I'm the one that spilled the coffee."

"Nonsense, Lenalee! We're the ones who surprised you. And that's the reason why you spilled it."

"It's fine." Lenalee was now completely awake and energized. "You guys can thank me later when I bring a new batch. I drank some of your guys' coffee on my way here, so I was going to go back for more anyway."

"Hooray for Lenalee!" Everybody in the Science Division cheered.

Komui, however, started to bite his fingernails. "Lenalee!? Exactly whose cup did you drink from?! You're not supposed to be sharing any cups with anyone!"

"They're all perfectly washed, brother."

She left the lab and cheers for her could still be heard after she closed the door. As she walked through the hallways of the Order, she kept that orange book at her side. She continued to study it, this time, more thoroughly.

**TO BE CONTINUED**

I hope it didn't feel like you were reading a textbook. I tried to make something complex like Hoshino would. I promise in the next chapter, there will be more backbone to the story.

I hope Lenalee wasn't too OOC. You just don't really see Lenalee waking up other than chapter 184.

I did this in one day but I feel pretty good about it. The story will be a short one. Probably 4 chapters at the most. But I'm leaning towards 3 chapters. Also, I don't have a planned schedule or anything because I didn't finish any chapters in advance. I usually take a week or two to update a story (no more than two weeks, I promise). But the only thing that keeps me motivated is your reviews. So please REVIEW! Whether it be praise, criticism, advice, tips, questions, or flames (has to be reasonable), I welcome ALL! This is a message for all you D. Grayers out there! I thank and salute thee.


	2. Evening

**Author's Notes:**

Sorry for the short chapter. But the good news is that I've decided to make 4 chapters for this story. I wanted this chapter to end at a certain place, so that's why it was short. I know I promised more backbone, but definitely next chapter will have it.

This only has about 2000 words compared to chapter 1's almost 4000. I will try to make the other chapters in the 3500 range.

**D. Gray-Man**

"So it's official! Miranda is a level 2!" Lenalee nodded her head with finality, crossing her arms to add effect.

_Miranda…she is a very nice lady. I would call her a friend without a doubt. Plus, we have been seeing a lot of each other as of late. But still, that was because of the mission. I never had lunch with her or arranged a meeting with her. The only times I see her is when we're in a group. We've never had a 'one-on-one meeting'. Granted, we did share a hospital room together and we chatted for a bit. But there is still room to evolve. _

Lenalee was sitting in the confines of her bedroom in secrecy, in a crisscross position, with pictures of her friends organized neatly in front of her. She placed Miranda's picture in a pile to keep record that Miranda was a level 2. Miranda's picture was accompanied by Krory and Bak, who were also level 2's.

She was getting pretty serious about this. It was taking every ounce of her concentration to decide the level for each friend.

The next was Lavi. She knew from the moment she saw his picture that it was going to be a very hard decision. She was thinking of putting him with the level 3's, along with the entire Science Division. She had served the Science division for so long, Reever and Johnny only to name a few, that she sees all of them as level 3 friends. But Lavi…he just seems more than a level 3 somehow.

_Is Lavi past a level 3? If so, where should he belong? Anything after level 3, there is a split between Emotionally Intertwined and Complimentary Terms. Lavi is a very complex person. There are times where he is aloof and there are times where he could be very serious. When I injured my legs, I was sure that Lavi was crying for me. So maybe, I could insert him in the Emotionally Intertwined group? Then again, Lavi's main appeal to me is his aloofness. Wait…did I just give him a compliment for his aloofness? Earlier today, I remember Lavi complimented on my hair. So maybe…_

"So it's official! Lavi and I are on Complimentary Terms!" She nodded again in a similar fashion. "Sheesh, that was the hardest one by far!"

But Lenalee took back that last remark. Her next picture was Kanda.

_Yu? Let's see…how do I start? I knew him ever since we were little. I definitely consider him as a friend. Although he never shows it, I'd say that he considers me a friend too. He is, without a doubt, above level 3. But where does he belong? Okay, he definitely doesn't belong in the Complimentary Terms. I remember him telling me that I was strong but…he doesn't act aloof with me nearly as much as Lavi. Does the person always have to be aloof? If Yu wasn't so suppressive of his emotions, I'd say we would have quite a friendship. I can analyze Yu's emotions easily. Although he acts tough all the time, I could tell when he's sad and when he's afraid. I may be bending the rules a bit but I decided…_

"It's official! Me and Yu and Emotionally Intertwined!" She tried to nod but her constant thinking was giving her a headache. Instead, she hummed it. "Mm Hmm."

Even to Lenalee, it seemed weird to put 'Yu Kanda' and 'Emotional' in the same sentence. But it was logical in a sense. Lenalee could see her friendship with Kanda evolving into a Brother-Sister Friendship someday. Not all brothers had to be like Komui.

There was only one picture left. It seemed she intentionally saved this for last.

"Allen's picture? Is that all that's left?" Lenalee sighed. "I guess I have to do it sooner or later."

_Allen…I just can't. It's too hard. Or should I say, it's too easy. Painstakingly easy._

"Could it be…Allen and I are in a Brother-Sister Friendship?" Lenalee was staring at a blank wall but she was pretending that someone was there. She didn't imagine anybody in particular, only someone who would listen and shut up. "Isn't it obvious? After our last mission, our friendship has been nothing _but_ emotional moments. It's possible that we exceeded Emotionally Intertwined and evolved into a Brother-Sister Friendship. Even Allen stated it himself…that I am like his sister."

That echo started to invade her mind once again. _Sisterrr…sisterrr…sisterrr…sisterrr…_

Lenalee tried to shrug it off.

Although her friendship with Allen was on the highest level possible, level 5, for some reason she felt hostile over it. Perhaps she wanted her friendship with Allen to forego a different direction.

"I have a strong friendship with Allen. I should be happy, right?"

She tried to get under the covers, hoping all her troubles will breeze over after a quick nap. But she forgot about the organized pile of pictures on her bed top. All the pictures fell off the bed. All her hard work ruined in a matter of seconds.

This only resulted with a sigh. "It doesn't matter. It's just a book. It doesn't mean a thing."

She grabbed onto the small book and glanced through the remaining pages to see if the rest was worth reading. Near the end of the book, there was a page that stood out from the others. Words had been highlighted bright yellow. If someone highlighted these words, it must be something worth knowing.

"Reverting back…" She read the passage aloud. "Like a house of cards, friendships could build and friendships could fall. Long distant or long absent friendships could eventually deteriorate without either person doing anything wrong. Or people could just simply outgrow each other and drift apart. In other words, friendships could 'devolve' just as they 'evolve'. For example, a level 4 friendship could revert back to a level 1 with a single fight. The aforementioned fight is known as the 'flaw'. Flaws are the reasons for a friendship to revert back or worse…for a friendship to end. If this happens, the friendship becomes level 0, otherwise known as Exclusive Terms."

It was evening. The nap was now out of the question. She hasn't seen Allen the entire time they've gotten back from the Ark. And that was three days ago.

"I'm not worried about falling into level 0 with Allen…" She opened her door. "…I'm just going to see where Allen is."

She kept repeating that to herself over and over again. By the time she reached the door to Allen's bedroom, all of that repeating had all been for vain. She was still worried.

_.::._

_Knock. Knock._

"Allen, open this door!" The door was closed but it wasn't clicked in place. So she gave one final, forceful knock that swung the door open. "I got something I have to say!"

On the bed of Allen's bedroom, Lenalee didn't find who she was looking for. This boy was a couple years older, wore a crescent smile, and grew scorching red hair on his cranium. "Lenalee?!"

"Lavi? What are you doing here?"

"Oh um, just looking for my headband…" Lavi opened a drawer to pretend like he was searching. "It's got to be here somewhere…"

Lenalee noticed he had no headband.

"Are you sure you should be looking around Allen's stuff?" She was confused as to why Lavi was acting so strangely. "Why would Allen need your headband in the first place?!"

"Beats me. I got to say though, Allen really knows how to hide things. I've tried so hard to--"

"You were just resting on his bed a minute ago!"

"Lenalee, shush, you're yelling…"

"I'm sorry but I'm looking for Allen! Do you know where he is?"

"Well…umm…you see…" Lavi was stuttering. He finally spat it all out. "I looked all over the Order and I think he's missing."

"What…" Lenalee was taken aback in horror. "Are you sure?"

He regretted his words. After seeing Lenalee's face drenched in tears, he tried to be optimistic. "C'mon I'm sure he's fine."

She ran out the door without a said response. Her movements were all that was necessary. It was such a sad sight to behold.

Lavi cringed and turned his head away. He leaned his forehead against the wall and thumped it. "I'm going straight to hell!"

He slouched down the floor. He put his hand in his coat pocket and pulled out his headband.

He put it on. "I hate this stupid thing…it's so warm and itchy."

He stood up from the ground.

"But at least it's good for one thing." He was referring to how it covered the wound on his forehead he just gave himself. "I better just help poor Lenalee out."

He walked towards the door, but on his way, he stepped on something. He almost tripped because of it.

_The Five Levels of Friendship?_ This book had unknowingly dropped from Lenalee's coat pocket while she ran out of the door.

"What is this?" He picked it up and examined it. His eyes widened at the nostalgia. "Is this what I think it is?!"

To confirm his thoughts, he peeked at the first page of the introduction. It read:

_Dedicated to_

_Myself..._

"I knew it! I've definitely seen this book before!"

**To Be Continued**

Now there are three mysteries so far.

1) Why did Lavi read a book called, "How To Be More Like Your Best Friend"?

2) Why is Lavi acting so strangely?

3) How does Lavi know about the Five Levels Book?

I hope that you enjoyed this short chapter. I don't usually update this early so think of it as a good thing. Sorry to the LenaleexKanda fans, I don't really see much of you guys. But I hope I didn't piss any of you guys off.

Also, I don't think Lenalee calls Kanda by his first name. But I just thought it sounded nicer. Another thing, I included a highlighter even though highlighters weren't invented yet *_* On the other hand, robots weren't invented yet either.

Remember to REVIEW my fic if you have the chance. I will accept almost anything. You can even complain how short the chapter was.

For all you D. Grayers out there (I'm not so sure if that is a real term), I thank and salute thee.


	3. Late Evening

**Author's Notes:**

Chapter 3 is now up. It is over 5000 words to make up for last chapter.

Thank you everyone that reviewed my story. This story has the most reviews out of my stories and the less chapters so far. So yeah...

**_***I changed the chapter names so don't get confused***_**

I'm really bad with the chapter names. I like doing summaries but chapter names just get to me.

Lastly, you guys came up with very intelligent predictions. Now this chapter will answer a lot of questions...and add a bunch a new questions to take its place. I bet you guys will be surprised.

**D. Gray-Man**

_Why would Lenalee read something like this?_

He flipped through the pages in a rush, casting a glance at each turn. He didn't need to see much. The pages came to an end and left Lavi unsatisfied. He took a couple of moments to stare at it with dire disapproval.

_Gyah, what kind of garbage has she been reading? She's not going to learn much from this book…_

He grimaced at the situation. He shut the book forcefully and buried it in his coat pocket. His hand was kept inside the pocket, squeezing the book immensely with a great deal of frustration. The book was on the verge of tearing apart; the hard cover was bending and the pages were crumpling. Don't underestimate the strength of an exorcist.

_Especially…since it was written by _him_!_

He stood in front of the closed door, inside the side of the room, with the doorknob held tightly in his _other_ hand. He wasn't sure if he should open it just yet. The reason he was so hesitant was because he knew searching for Allen would be impossible. Allen was _not_ missing.

"Damn it! I made Lenalee worry and it's entirely my fault!"

A voice sneaked up behind him. "Oh so that was you?"

_Ahhhhhh!_ His reaction seemed silent on the outside. But on the inside, it was a full-blown opera. That voice was what made it so frightening. It had a ghostly sound with an emotionless tone. It was familiar. "Bookman?"

"Who else would it be?" He was looking like his ordinary self as he was done recovering from the last mission. Although he wasn't trapped inside the Ark like the others, he dealt with some of his own problems on the outside. The old man was sturdy indeed.

"Hello, sir." Lavi bowed nervously before his gramps. _Crap! Out of all people to sneak behind me! Anyone would've been better than this guy!_

Bookman was boggled. He raised an eyebrow in suspicion. "You're being a polite boy today, Junior."

"Huh? What do you mean?

"That's the first time you bowed to me." Bookman gave an unexpected sniff. "Usually, you would call me a panda and we'd hurl insults to each other until one of us courageously walked away."

_Shit! I'm acting too polite!_ "Mr. Bookman, sir?" _Shit! There I go again!_

"You shouldn't make an old man cry…" Then Bookman wiped the tears away with his finger. "…and you shouldn't make young women cry, either."

Lavi froze at that remark. "Are you talking about Lenalee?"

He nodded.

"She was crying? Which way did she go?"

Bookman pointed to the left side of the halls. Going that direction would lead to the cafeteria, the library, the laboratory, and if you go really far, the front door. It seemed like the most endearing path. The right side would only leave to more bedrooms where many people were resting. It was unlikely for Allen to be in anyone's bedroom other than his own. Lavi decidedly took the left side, heading to the cafeteria.

"So are you going to help Lenalee find Allen?" Bookman asked as Lavi was still his sights.

Lavi shouted back at him, waving at him as if to say 'don't worry about a thing'. "No, I'm going to find Lenalee!"

.::.

"Hey, has Allen been here?" Lenalee clasped her hands together in a prayer. Her body bent over, her head shot upwards, and her legs huddled up, resembling a begging girl asking for food on a cold winter's night. Her eyes glimmered with tiny sparkles that only the most stone-hearted man in the world could ignore.

But the man whom she spoke to was far from stone-hearted. "I'm sorry sweetie-pie but I haven't seen Allen at all these past days."

"I see…"

"I sure do miss the little squirt though! He was always so polite when he asked me to cook something! Mmm Mmm!"

"Yeah, okay, thank you Jerry."

"Anytime, sweetie-pie…"

Lenalee felt the need to take a break, just a short one, but she tried to overcome it. This wasn't the time to take a break. Allen's whereabouts were unknown, and by every passing second, it was becoming harder and harder for her to bear. Her head was starting to ache in pain and her vision started to lack in clarity. By sheer willpower, she ran towards the cafeteria exit to continue her investigative search.

_Oomph. _Lenalee bumped into someone. Her face was buried in his coat so she couldn't see who it was. She didn't know whether to embrace him back or push him away severely. There was something that brought her to a standstill. _Allen, is this you?_

"You seem tired."

"Lavi? Let me go. I need to find Allen _now_!"

He let her go without much trouble. He stared at her pathetically with a saddened glint in his eyes. It was depressing. "You're still going to try? Don't strain yourself, Lenalee."

"Of course I have to try! Allen…something might've--"

Lavi approached her and did something unexpected. He softly took hold of Lenalee's cheeks and they were face-to-face. He whispered to her in a passionate and confident way of saying things. "Allen will be all right. Okay?"

Lenalee had nothing to say; but instead, yawned. Right in his face. Then she fell asleep with Lavi's hands still on her face and her body collapsed onto his so comfortably that she didn't wake up. Lavi had no choice but to carry her to her room. It was a hassle but he drew no objection to it.

.::.

It wasn't until he traveled halfway the distance when Lenalee woke up. She didn't put up any resistance. All she did was open her eyes a little and spoke in a light tone of voice. "Lavi, why are you…"

"Don't worry. I'm carrying you to your room."

Her eyes widened and suddenly she was wide awake. "What? Why?" She was now starting to put up more of a battle.

"Lenalee, I'd like you to stop. You're in no condition to keep running around the Order. You're also in no condition to be worrying this much." Lavi tried his best to get her to see _his_ side of things. "Let's see, while you're resting, I'll go search for Allen, how's that?"

"I hate it…"

"What?" _Did she just say she hates it?_

"Lavi, why are you…" She repeated her words from before. "…why are you…acting so much like Allen?"

_Does she know?_ He stumbled a bit, almost dropping Lenalee in the process. But when he didn't, he took a breather to relieve himself. His heart rate grew exponentially and Lenalee was close in contact with it enough to hear its constant pounding.

"I hate when people put the whole burden on themselves like the rest of us doesn't matter." Lenalee talked to him sternly, though her eyes were now closed from exhaustion. "People like you and Allen. Can't you see that we're all a part of this struggle? That's why I can't rest while you try to…"

"I'm sorry, Lenalee." Lavi concluded the conversation with a classic phrase.

After a lapse of silence, Lenalee shifted in his arms and Lavi came to a stop. He waited for her to say something. "Find Allen, please…"

"Allen is probably right under our noses. I'll find him. It's a promise."

His heartbeat pounded harder than ever, much to Lenalee's knowledge. To this, she just smiled and allowed him to carry her all the way to her room.

.::.

He placed her body onto her bed with the gentlest of care. He enveloped her with blankets because the snowstorm outside left a breeze into the room, somehow, even though the window was locked shut.

"Thank you…"

He turned off the lights and closed her door without a slam. He walked a few steps away before letting out his complaint. "Why did I promise her?! What should I do? Should I walk around aimlessly and pretend to search? I would feel bad if I didn't!"

Because he knew…Allen was impossible to find.

.::.

An hour or so later…

"I better check up on Lenalee." Lavi walked by her door and took advantage of the convenience. First, he knocked on the door; after no answer, he creaked open the door slightly enough to stick his arm in and flip the light switch. Through the crack of the door, he gaped at the bed with no one in it. _Damn it._

He ran back to his prior direction into the depths of Lenalee's probable location.

_Great. I spend my time searching aimlessly around the Order but now I have a real purpose this time. To find Lenalee._

He ran his hardest whilst he thought of where to go. One idea that came to mind was the Laboratory where she might want to talk to her brother for comfort. Other ideas were the cafeteria where she might want a late snack or the bathroom where she might want to use the toilet or wash her face. He also suspected Allen's room as a possible destination but he was going to check it later because it was the farthest. Then he stopped to contemplate when he came up with something brilliant.

He reached inside his coat pocket and pulled out the recognizable orange book. _The library. Could she be looking for her book?_

He was just about to head to the library until he heard a cry. _That_ cry. There was only one person in the Order that possessed such an annoying shriek even at the worst of times.

"Please! Someone help please!" Komui was on a ballistic frenzy.

"Komui! What's the problem?!" Lavi tried to appease him.

"Lavi…" Komui was babbling out all kinds of words. Words of anguish and words of anger alike. "…help Lenalee…"

"Where is she?! Is she in danger?!"

"I've just received a report from Timcanpi…" Komui pointed out to the golem hovering over his head. "…apparently Lenalee is outside in that dreadful snowstorm!"

"Snowstorm?! Her?!" Lavi was bewildered at what he just heard. "If she sent out a golem, she must be in trouble!"

"Obviously you moron!"

Timcanpi flew by in between them to stop the quarreling. Then it opened its huge mouth and emitted and holographic picture of Lenalee's situation. It was hard to see because of all the hard hitting snow but it was clear who was in the middle of all that mess. That figure…it was a girl. That coat…it was an exorcist. That hair…it was Lenalee.

"Lenalee!" Lavi tried to reach out for the hologram as if it were the real thing. The image faded as Timcanpi closed its jaws and flew away. "Timcanpi, wait up!"

"Don't lose sight of him! He's leading the way to Lenalee's whereabouts!"

"R-Right…" Lavi kept a watchful eye focusing on Timcanpi. The golem was fluttering its wings and moving all around the place, annoyingly disrupting Lavi's lockdown stare. But Lavi had to bear with it. He could not lose eye contact with the golem. For Lenalee's sake.

After a barrage through the main lobby, with a few bodily collisions, Timcanpi darted outside a window. Lavi cursed as he took the front door that was beside it. The reason he cursed was because the wall stood in the way of his vision for one second, causing a blind spot. By the time he got outside, just as he feared, he lost sight of the golem.

Panicked, worried, anguished, saddened, overwhelmed, and tons more feelings mixed into him. He felt his stomach ache, forcing him down to his knees. Millions of sweat droppings gushed past his brow, oblivious to the weather, and his headband could only absorb so much.

"Another use for this bothersome headband…" Lavi cracked a grin. Shortly after, considering the circumstances, he called himself a monster for attempting such humor. There was a time and place for everything and he chose wrongly.

He wasn't going to hightail back to the door while Lenalee was out somewhere in places unknown. He _had_ to find her.

.::.

Slowly, step by step, when his boots met the ground, it made a chomping noise. It was the breaking of ice crystals. With each step, there left a deep print. Perhaps a blessing in disguise.

With absolutely no clue of direction he crossed paths with a mountain covered in a sheet of white, or more likely, a mountainous pile of pure snow. There were no mountains near the Order, mostly because the Order itself was built _on_ a mountain.

_A mountain made of snow huh? This might get dangerous…_

He was about to turn around and look elsewhere until he noticed something moving around in his sleeve. It had some trouble escaping so he unbuttoned the end of the sleeve – where the wrist was – and a ball-like figure jetted out.

_T-Timcanpi?! How did you get in there?!_

Before he could fathom this break in reality, Timcanpi had already begun to fly away.

"Timcanpi! Hold on!"

It was useless to try and grab him because the golem had increased to an unimaginable altitude. He kept a close eye on it; however, he had to squint to see even a spec of Timcanpi. From that moment forward, he followed him without turning away even once. He didn't even want to blink or else he might lose visual all over again.

Lavi began to take steps on the mountain of snow. The chomping noise that came from his footing became even louder due to the thickness of the ice crystals. There were times where he almost slipped and things might've gotten messy thereafter. But he sucked it up, squared his shoulders, and walked on.

After circling the mountain to its backside, Timcanpi finally started to land. Very slowly, he gently rested on _her_ chest.

"Lenalee! Oh God, Lenalee!"

He ran over to her. Her body was in a straightened position with her legs curved to her right. This worried Lavi because this was exactly how her body was in the hologram. This must mean that she hasn't moved since _that_ time.

"Oh Lenalee! You can't be…" He tried to cover her body with his own. The snow was falling rapidly and it was beginning to bury her. "…don't go to sleep!"

The sound of his voice was strong. An avalanche had already been foreseen.

_Rumble. Rumble._

.::.

_My body…it feels so numb…_

Lenalee started to gain consciousness because of the loud sounds. She turned her head and had an ample view of someone standing before her.

_Lavi…is that you?_

He started to speak, totally unaware of Lenalee being awake. "I will protect her! Innocence Activate!"

And so Lavi did. But he wasn't using his usual hammer. Growing out of his left shoulder…was an arm…bearing a cross.

Lenalee's eyes widened. Then she began to drift back into sleep. "Allen? I must…I must…be dreaming…"

.::.

Lavi tried to catch his breath. He had done it. _I've stopped the avalanche but…_

He lied down next to Lenalee, almost daring to close his eyes. He stared at her and noticed she still wasn't waking up. He was now feeling sorry for her more than ever. If she died, he wouldn't be able to tell her the truth. The truth that…

_No! I will save her!_

He started to drag himself closer to her. He used his remaining strength to raise her into a sitting position. Ice crystals began to fall from her coat. What he did was…he gave her a big hug. He tried to do it as long as he could. Don't get the wrong idea. He was doing it to give her warmth. When he finally ran out of energy, he let her go. He and Lenalee were now back-to-back and all they could do was wait.

At that moment, a huge sound came from the direction of the Order and it was getting louder and louder. It was an overwhelming presence. There were mechanical sounds such as beeps and gears grinding on each other. From the corner of his eye, Lavi could tell it was a machine of sorts. On top of this machine was the head officer of the Science Division. This time he put on a serious face. He knew this was no laughing matter.

He spoke. "Is everyone okay?"

.::.

Lenalee was closing her eyes but she could hear a voice…no…two voices! It was as if her ears were the only part of her that was awake.

_What were you doing? How could you just sit there and watch Lenalee nearly die? _One voice said.

_Watch what you say! I just stopped an entire avanlanche by myself! _Said the other.

_Come on, it shouldn't have been too hard for you. Couldn't you just use your fire seal?_

_You already know that I can't do that!_

_Oh sorry. I forgot who I was talking to. By the way, you look ridiculous._

_You know perfectly well I look like is like this. This whole transformation business is your fault and you know it!_

_Accusing people won't solve anything. Lenalee doesn't know, right?_

_No. I don't think…_

"What are you guys talking about?" Lenalee said aloud. She opened her eyes and had enough strength to pull herself up from the bed she was lying in. She could finally identify who the two people talking were. They were the people she had predicted, based on the sound of their voices, but now she could confirm them. "Lavi? Brother? Are you two having a fight?"

"Lenalee!"

"Lenalee!"

"What's wrong? Why are you two acting funny?"

Lavi tried to give an excuse. "We were just…you know…"

Komui jumped in. "…talking about how relieved we are that you're safe now!"

"Good one…" Lavi whispered into his ear.

Lenalee wasn't fooled. She asked another question while maintaining her suspicion. "Who saved me?"

Lavi gave an immediate answer. "Oh! Oh! It was m--"

"It was me!" Komui pushed Lavi to the ground and stole Lenalee's attention. "I saved you with my Komurin Plus Model!"

"D-Don't take all the credit…"

Komui continued to explain his heroics to Lenalee. He had this strong feeling of pride that surrounded him. "I knew you and Lavi were stranded in the middle of the storm and I couldn't just leave you guys there. So me and Komurin searched for days 'til the ends of the earth and finally found you two!"

"What do you mean 'for days'? It happened today! Aren't you exaggerating much?"

Lenalee bursted into a rosy color. "Oh really! That's amazing Brother!"

Lavi went to the corner and hugged his knees in despair. "She's falling for it…but I'm the one who stopped the avalanche…"

"How did you finally find us, brother?"

"Well, you see…" Komui crossed his arms and created a moment of silence, putting his sister in complete suspense.

"It was because of my footprints, right?" Lavi cut in.

"No, those footprints were filled up with the falling snow by the time I got there." Komui explained calmly, driving Lavi into his corner once again. "It was because of Komurin's outstanding navigation system I installed that can trace heat. It was vague but the heat from your bodies is what saved you."

Lavi thought to himself sarcastically. _At least he's not taking _all_ the credit…_

"Lavi, you saved me too right?" Lenalee noticed how Lavi didn't even get a chance to speak because of her brother.

"Well um…" Lavi, who wanted to show off how he stopped an avalanche, was now being modest all of a sudden.

Komui checked his watch and made an exit towards the door. "Well I got work to do. Rest well Lenalee…"

"Thank you, Brother!" Lenalee waved at him until he was completely gone. Then she stared at Lavi precariously.

"What?" Lavi was wondering why she was glaring at him. It was not often she would glare like that. But whenever she would do it, it would just make you feel the worst because you were the one who caused her to make that face. Then you would feel guilty and try to make that face smile again. But what did he do to deserve that face?

"It wasn't snowing _that_ hard…" Lenalee was trying to put her point across. "Your hair…it's completely white."

This was what made Lavi look so 'ridiculous'. His formerly red hair was now white all over. Lavi was afraid that Lenalee would laugh at it. But he would've never guessed that she'd be angry at him for it.

Lavi thought that she wasn't going to wake up to see him like this. He would need to explain to her. But that was something he didn't want to do. "Um…I just felt like dying it. Do you like it?"

_Is he trying to be more like Allen?_ Lenalee looked at him grotesquely. _What was that thing he said about transforming?_

Lavi turned away in embarrassment due to Lenalee's silent response. Then he took a hold of something from the top of a table and brought it to her. It was in a mug. "Here's some hot cocoa."

She took it in her hands gratefully. Putting it closer to her lips, she noticed something and set it down. "This cup belongs to Allen…"

"Well, I don't know what happened to yours. So I used Allen's." Lavi laughed. "He won't mind I'm sure."

Lenalee was looking at the mug uneasily for her own personal reasons.

"What's wrong, Lenalee? They're all perfectly washed."

Lenalee snapped out of it. "You're right." She took a little sip and she was already feeling much better.

.::.

20 minutes or so later…

Lenalee was fast asleep and Lavi just sat there. He could've left anytime he wanted but he chose to stay. He was told that Lenalee would make a full recovery but that wasn't the issue he was worrying about.

_I guess I better show her after she wakes up._

He stood up from his chair and performed a routinely stretch before making his way towards the exit. When he was just about to leave the room he heard a voice. "Don't go…"

He turned his head and he was certain that it came from Lenalee. He entered the room again and approached Lenalee closer. "Lenalee, don't force yourself to stay awake. You need to sleep."

"How could sleep if your making such a racket?"

Lavi noticed she was being a little cranky. "I'm sorry . I didn't realize--"

She shrugged in her bed and mumbled. "C-Can you just stay for a little while longer?"

He was confused because he thought he was making too much noise for her. He didn't ask questions and sat down on the chair he was last sitting in. "You know…you're a hypocrite."

Lenalee jumped up in a rage. "What are you talking about? I never wake _you_ up when _you're_ sleeping."

"I'm not talking about that…" Lavi kneeled before her bed so he was now talking with her at an even height. "I'm talking about placing the burden. You place so much of the burden on yourself to save your friends that you didn't even care if you died in the snow. How do you think that'd make your other friends feel?"

She shrugged, partly because she was still cranky from being tired.

Then Lavi took something out of his coat pocket and showed it to her. It was the orange book, entitled, "The Five Levels of Friendship".

Lenalee stared at it with narrowed eyes. She tried to look for her coat – which was taken off of her when she was placed on the bed – but it was probably in some closet concealed by a door. She concluded that Lavi had somehow gotten a hold of it. _How does he have my book?_

"Does this look familiar to you?"

She tried to make gamble grab for it. "Give it! Give it to me!"

"Lenalee, you shouldn't be reading this. There is nothing in this book that is knowledgeable or beneficial whatsoever." Lavi started to open it and read some lines in his head to see how much drivel it actually had.

"You read it?!" Lenalee was getting steamed. "You're a jerk, Lavi! You know that?! I would never read one of your books without permission!"

_Geez…the side effects for that medicine is really kicking in. _"I'm sorry, Lenalee…" Lavi was facing the floor. "…but I had to."

Lenalee stopped her squirming and listened to what he had to say.

"Lenalee, friendship is not something that could be analyzed or placed into a system. Friendship is something that you feel within your heart. Friendship doesn't need a definition because it's impossible to explain it just right. Do you really think friendship could have five levels and that's all?"

Lenalee was silent after that short speech. At that moment, she saw the serious side of Lavi again. She had a tough time putting it into words but now it was starting to feel awkward being in the same room as him.

Lavi continued. "By the way, if you planned on risking your life just for Allen, you're bond with him must be great I'm sure."

"You're wrong…" She finally was able to respond.

"Huh?"

"It wasn't for _just_ Allen. I would've done it for anyone."

Lavi didn't say anything; instead, he started to make his way towards the door. "I'm going to put the book back in the library. Good night, Lenalee."

"Good night…Allen."

Lavi was caught off-guard. _Did she call me Allen?_ But he just smiled and closed her door…without a slam.

**To Be Continued**

This was the longest chapter and I can't promise if the next one will be longer. The next one will the last one.

Thank you everyone for reviews once again and I hope the same people could review again, as well as new people.

Now the newest mysteries are added:

1) Who wrote the book?!

2) Tranformation wtf?!

- That may answer why Lavi is acting strange...

Good bye! Check out the next chapter. Although I don't know when I'll be able to update because I just started school. I thank and salute thee.


	4. New Morning

**Author's Notes:**

Dum Da-Da-Dum! Enjoy...

If you reading this sentence, then I would love to thank you so much for reading. If you are on this chapter, that must mean you read the chapter before this and the chapter before that one. This is the concluding chapter so I would love to hear your thoughts on the ending.

The ending may be controversial in terms of being good or bad. I had a friend read it and they were disappointed -_- so I would like reviews that regard on how you felt about it. Don't let this stop you from reading it because you might think it was good.

I've went hardcore on the descriptions, though I became lazy in some parts that I hope aren't obvious.

Thank You Again So Much! Allen, Lenalee, and D. Gray-Man forever!

**D. Gray-Man**

Lenalee was brushing her hair in her room in front of her door-sized mirror. The mirror was attached to the closet door so it was conveniently if she wanted to see herself in an outfit. The mirror's reflection gave off a glimpse of the hall because her bedroom door was open. As she continued to brush, she saw someone walking by the hall in the mirror. The figure looked back at her and ran away scared.

Lenalee blinked. "What was that?"

.::.

The bright sun that embellished the once dull blue sky marked a brand new day for the Black Order. Snow was melting steadily but it was apparent that all of it would be gone soon. Lavi looked out the window atop the windowsill with one of his legs straight and the other brought up. He rested his chin on his knee, forming a comfortable uncomfortable-looking position.

The clouds passing by were shaped like sheets rather than the stereotypical pillow. It was quite clear that the clouds were moving. Paying his attention to the clean visible view of the sunny sky and the blizzard-endured grass, at the same time, he listened to the words of Squad Leader Reever.

"It looks like the substance is thinning. Your innocence was probably the catalyst. By activating it, the supernatural ability it contains must have been too much for a mere chemical to withstand."

"Good riddance. The sooner this wears off…the better. I'm tired of lying to her."

"Her?" As Reever raised an eyebrow, and so did a smile. Not the serene and collected smile he usually put on. This smile was difficult to comprehend, it looked like he was impressed and giddy and touched and sappy. "You're talking about Lenalee, I'm guessing?"

Lavi – who even hasn't established eye contact – tried his best to shrug ablely.

"I guess she would be pretty mad if she found out you have been lying to her this whole time…" Reever shifted in his computer chair, spinning it and opening his legs to sit on it backwards, looking cool doing it. "You spent the whole day with her yesterday, haven't you?"

He turned and they finally caught each other's gazes. "Wrong…" That's all he said but another message broke through from the disgruntled expression on his face.

"Oh?" He was about to correct himself and say 'the whole _night_' instead of 'the whole_ day_' but the look he received admonished him to stay quiet. So he did. Reever figured Lavi didn't feel like starting up a conversation.

But that notion didn't last long as Lavi began to speak. "So how long do I have?"

"Eh, maybe, 'til lunchtime." Reever took an educated guess. Despite it being just a guess, from a scientist, estimations with valid evidence are usually correct. "Consider yourself lucky that you had the opportunity to ask me before time ran out. If you didn't, you might've transformed in a public setting without warning."

"Whew! You can say _that_ again…" Lavi was relieved to hear that. "If Lenalee saw me, it'd be impossible to explain."

"Speaking of Lenalee...I'm surprised she didn't notice your hair." Reever claimed. Pertaining to the aforementioned 'valid evidence,' the color of Lavi's hair was one of them.

"Oh, she noticed all right. Big time." Lavi looked back at the event. It was when Lenalee glared at him when she noticed it. He could not forget. "So I told her that I dyed it white on my own."

"A-And she believed something like that?"

"Well, she was pretty much sick from the blizzard and exhausted from worrying too much." Lavi paused and remembered the last few bit of words he and Lenalee exchanged to each other that night. "She even referred to me as Allen."

"What?!" Reever flung himself backwards onto the floor landing on his spine. Johnny, who had just entered the room a minute before did the same.

"And she didn't suspect a thing?!" Johnny broke into the conversation without first announcing his presence, surprising the heck out of both Lavi and Reever. It seemed like he had heard everything from their discussion and wanted to influence his opinion.

"When did you get here, Johnny?" Lavi walked over to Reever so he could help him up. Reever patted his white laboratory coat to free himself of dust and other types of dirt. White coats easily reveal dirt and that was one thing that really pissed him off.

"If you were here this whole time, you would know Johnny…" Although Reever was surprised as well, after a moment, he came up with a possible reason for this. "…Lenalee was delirious. She probably didn't even know what she was saying."

"T-That's right!" Lavi and Johnny managed to say at the same time. Lavi felt encouraged. Lenalee _didn't_ have to know about this. When this is all done and dealt with, he could forget any of this ever happened. After lunchtime, that was what Reever said, would be when this was all over.

"I could be wrong, though." Reever's words shot down Lavi's three graceful seconds of confidence.

"How can I trust you if you say it so bluntly?!"

"Hmm. No, you can trust me. At least I think so…" Reever was torturing Lavi at a battle of vexing. "…but I meant it when I said lunchtime would be when you transform."

"Why are you so sure of that?" While Lavi was talking, his arm began to glow. The arm that once looked normal transformed into one with red skin, frightening claws, and the marking of a cross. This answered Lavi's question on its own but Reever still took the liberty to explain.

"It's already beginning to start."

Lavi, stricken with surprise and horror, whipped out his glove to cover his _noticeable_ hand. Then he buttoned his sleeve tightly to keep it from sliding back. These panicky actions caused Reever to stare agape.

"What's the deal? Why are you being so conservative?"

Lavi didn't want Lenalee to find out. That much was evident. "I have my reason." _But does that warrant my overactive behavior?_

Reever held his jaw and pondered for awhile. He reached inside his desk drawer and pulled out a syringe filled with red liquid. He also took out a disposable needle and attached it to the end. It was sealed securely so it wouldn't spill if someone happened to throw it. "Heads up!"

Out of instinct, Lavi reached out for it. He fumbled it twice but finally caught it with both hands just before it was about to hit the ground. He observed it to a certain degree and upon recognizing it, gave him a queasy feeling in his stomach. "This is…"

"That's how much is left after the first time you used it."

"Hey, for future reference, don't connect the needle and _then_ throw it at me!" Lavi stared at the syringe and, because of his frustration, he squeezed it so tightly that it was on the edge of breaking (much like he did to the _Five Levels_ book) but he was careful not to stab himself.

"You caught it, didn't you?" Reever said jokily as he walked towards him and gave him a light elbow jab. "Anyways, what do you think? Maybe you could stay in disguise a little longer and dig up some dirt on you-know-who?"

"Squad Leader? This isn't like you…" Johnny wondered what this caused this aberration in Reever.

"Your hair will become red again and your arm will become normal. Lenalee won't notice a thing."

"…" Lavi, however, remained silent. But it was obvious that his nerves took a shot.

Reever noticed this and tried to straighten everything out in a kind and redeeming manner. "C'mon now! Don't get angry. It was just a suggestion."

Lavi gave him an unfriendly stare. "If I take this, how much more time will I get until the potion wears off?"

_Is he actually thinking of taking it?_ "There isn't much of the potion left. So it'll last for only about an extra thirty minutes." Reever told him. "But I thought you couldn't wait until you transformed."

"I-I can't. I-I'm just curious, that's all."

"So you're not going to take it?" Despite it being his idea, Reever felt kind of relieved. He knew Allen wasn't the kind of person to spy on a friend. "I'm glad. You know I was kidding, right?"

"Um yeah…"

The two of them were standing still, not knowing what else to say, waiting for the other person to do something. Instead, the third person in the room, Johnny, decided to interject this prolonged moment of silence. "The Science Division are the only ones who know about this. What happens if you transform in front of Lenalee?"

"I guess I'll just have to try and avoid her." With that, Lavi walked out the door to start his day.

.::.

_Even though it'll take until lunchtime before I transform, I don't want to see Lenalee anytime before that. It's possible she doesn't even remember what happened last night, including my white hair. So if she _does_ see my hair, she might get interrogative on me. And I'll have to see that glare in her eyes again…_

Lavi was walking down the halls, hoping to score a snack in the cafeteria before Lenalee could develop an appetite and risk a possible confrontation. The roofs of the Order were pretty high up and Lavi just fixated his eyes on them in awe. The architecture was top-notch in class and quality and all that. It was something you could really appreciate, if you like that sort of stuff.

He dropped his head, and when he saw who was walking straight across the hall from him, he hid behind a pillar for the fear of being seen. That person walking across the hall was, of course, Lenalee.

In that uncreative hiding place with so little depth, he had no idea what to do. He was hoping that Lenalee would simply be a passerby and not notice him. But there was no way Lenalee could miss him; the thin pillar made his detection a sure thing. The architecture that he was once praising he was now cursing. Totally vulnerable, he did the only thing he could do to keep Lenalee from seeing his hair.

He reached inside of his pocket and took out the syringe. "Here I go…" He held it up and forced it down, injecting himself with the needle while closing his eyes. He kept his cool until all of the liquid made it through.

_Hmm…did it work?_

He stuck his head out from the pillar and tried to spot Lenalee in the halls. But she was gone.

Lavi was about to curse in his mind about how he would have deal with this appearance for an extra thirty minutes until he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around and let out an embarrassing high-pitched yelp. Lenalee giggled at Lavi's staggered reaction.

When Lavi turned to face her with an annoyed look, Lenalee quickly covered her mouth. "Sorry, I wasn't laughing at _you_. I was laughing at…"

"Don't worry about it." Lavi stood up and dusted himself off.

"Why were you on the floor?"

"It's not important, really…" Lavi was still wondering. Was his hair red again? There wasn't a mirror around to make sure, but considering Lenalee's actions towards him thus far, he assumed all of his features were back to normal. Then he realized that he could just check his arm instead to see if the potion worked. He popped open the buttons on his sleeves. His arm was normal again. His hair must've been normal again too but he couldn't take any chances. When he tried to forcefully pull out one of a piece of his hair, he could tell it was definitely red despite pulling out such a small piece. He finally took a sigh of relief.

"O-Okay…" Slowly but shyly, she continued walking down the halls as she was before.

This could be his only chance. Now that Lavi was affected by the potion for another thirty minutes, he might be able to 'dig some dirt' like Reever said. This could be his only chance.

He shouted out for Lenalee to stop. "Lenalee, wait up will ya?"

.::.

They were both walking down the halls together, passing room after room without any knowledge of where they were going. They both focused all their attention on each other and their conversation.

"I'm so glad that you're feeling better." Lavi brought up as he could not think of anything else to say.

"Mmm Hmm…" Lenalee was smiling so it really looked like she was feeling better. But there was something strange about her that Lavi couldn't quite place his finger on. She seemed so…simple.

"About Allen…" Lavi changed the subject. "…don't think I'm slacking or anything. I'll definitely find him."

"Mmm Hmm…"

Lavi just looked at her dumbly. He observed her face. She was smiling but it seemed forced. Almost as if she was uncomfortable. "How do feel about Allen, anyway? I mean, how much do you care about him?"

"Allen?" Lenalee stared at the high ceilings and thought for moment. "I think he's a very sweet boy."

Then he froze. "HUH?" _Something was just not right. That doesn't sound like anything like Lenalee would say. A very sweet boy? What an answer…_

"He's strong, too." She added.

_That's a…little better._

"Hmm? What's wrong Lavi?" Lenalee smiled as if everything was normal while Lavi was thinking the exact opposite.

"I can't do this…" Lavi cringed and shook his head away from her. His fists began to tighten to the point that they were shaking. "Lenalee…there's something I have to tell you."

"Hold on, is this some kind of secret or something?" Lenalee started to wear a worried face. She moved her arms around frantically to try to get Lavi to stop talking. "I don't want to get involved into something I'm not supposed to!"

"Lenalee, I am not really--"

But then Lavi choked on his words when Lenalee started to glow. Not just a partial amount of her but the entirety of her body was radiating a bright light. Then it looked like she was getting taller.

"What the hell is going on!" Lavi was absolutely baffled at the scene taking place. As the light began to fade, he saw the aftereffect. "Y-You're not Lenalee! Y-You're…Y-You're…M-M-M-M-M…"

"I'm sorry!" She sunk onto the ground while pulling on Lavi's pant leg. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you I was Miranda! Forgive me!"

"Miranda?!" Lavi's head was going in circles from the unexpected sequence of events that happened in the span of ten seconds. "What? When? How is it that you were Lenalee one second and Miranda the next?"

"You see…" Miranda started to calm down. She took a few breaths. But it turned out that those breaths were taken to release an even bigger scream. "I thought I was getting a flu shot! What else does a person do if they have the flu?!"

"A flu shot?" Lavi was still puzzled but he thought it was kind of funny. He almost dared to laugh.

"Yes, I got it from the Science Department." She gave a sniffle and wiped a tear from falling down her face. "But it ended up being some terrible potion that changed my outside appearance to look like Lenalee!"

"That _is_ terrible…" Lavi shared sympathy with her. "When did this happen?"

"Just this morning…" She showed no signs of calming down. "Can I borrow a tissue?"

"You're a great actress, Miranda." Lavi said generously. Then he realized something big that he had to ask her. "Miranda, listen carefully. Did Lenalee see you at all while you stole her appearance?"

"Why did you have to say the word 'stole'?" Miranda cried out. "It makes it sound like I've done something bad!"

"Miranda, answer me!" Lavi should've apologized first but he was eager to know the answer.

"Hmm, yeah I think…" Miranda was trying to talk in a clear voice without any uncontrollable whimpers or sniffles in between words. "I'm not sure if she saw me and it was only for a split second."

"What?!" Lavi stood as he was preparing to flee the scene. "I've got to go! Why didn't you tell me sooner that you were Miranda and not Lenalee!"

"It was all _his_ fault! The man who gave me the shot. After he gave me the shot potion, he threatened me not to tell anybody or else he'll attack me with his giant robot! You've got to believe me!"

"Komui? In that case, I believe you." Lavi had to find the _real_ Lenalee. He had to tell her the truth before this whole thing got out of hand even if it meant telling her that he lied.

.::.

Lenalee sat on the very edge of a table by herself next to a window. The luminance of the sun outside filled the entire cafeteria with a cheery atmosphere and everyone was in a cheery mood today. It was too late for breakfast and too early for lunch so Lenalee didn't see any of her friends in the cafeteria. But there were many Finders eating there to have an early lunch before they go on a mission at the actual lunchtime. She was friends with some Finders but she was in the mood to be alone for awhile.

'_This whole transformation business is your fault and you know it!'…that's what I heard…that's what Lavi said._

She rested her cheek onto her knuckle while forking a plate of spaghetti. She didn't eat much. All she did was twirl the fork to death over and over until every noodle caught onto it. As she was doing this she kept thinking.

_Lavi…my memory is vague but…his hair…there was something about his hair…_

Her eyes widened as she remembered what. The fork she was holding slipped out of her fingers and landed on the floor as it gave an unforgiving clank. Everybody stared at her direction but she remained oblivious to them.

_W-White…I completely forgot…his hair was white!_

She rubbed circles around her temples to stop the stressing thoughts from coming in so fast. Then she connected Lavi's white hair with that dream she had of Lavi using Allen's anti-akuma weapon. Maybe it wasn't a dream, after all.

_Lavi is hiding something from me…_ She remained sat. _…And I believe that_ this _is related to it somehow._

She looked down at the book she was holding, titled, _How To Be More Like Your Best Friend_.

A person entered the cafeteria in the corner of her eye and she saw that that person was wearing an exorcist coat; conveniently, it turned out to be the very person she was thinking about.

.::.

Reever was tilting his chair back with his legs kicked up on his desk. He was closing his eyes to rest them until he opened them suddenly. He remembered giving Lavi a red potion. But the problem was that the transformation potion was a red color when it should've been purple. Reever just shut his eyes trying to ignore his screw up.

"I must've given him something else." Reever cracked a grin. "Whoops."

.::.

Lavi saw her across the room. Their eyes were perfectly aligned so they were aware of each other's presence right off the bat. She was standing and her posture moved a little nervously. He was the same way.

Then all of a sudden Lenalee advanced toward him a little faster than necessary. She looked very serious that it frightened Lavi slightly. He was partly regretful that he set out to look for her. But there was no turning back now. Before he could take notice, Lenalee was already three steps away from him when she came to a stop. She clutched the collar on his coat.

"Now hand me the book!"

"What book?"

"The Five Levels of Friendship book! I couldn't find it in the library so you must've kept it!" Lenalee tried to emphasize her motives by flashing the _How To Be More Like You Best Friend_ book back and forth. "If you don't tell me, I have _this_ book to make sure you do."

"Lenalee…" Lavi looked at her with sympathy. "Don't you remember what I said? Friendship isn't something to--"

"Lavi! Stop messing with me!" Lenalee projected her voice to a whole new level. She was the complete opposite from Miranda's portrayal of her. "I know you're hiding something! So just spill it!"

"Lenalee? What are you talking about?" He had no idea what made Lenalee lose her temper like that. He had no more white hair. He had completely erased all of the evidence. So why was Lenalee still so suspicious?

Lenalee pointed to his head which made Lavi a little edgy. _Did I make a mistake? What's wrong with my hair? _He began to pat his head and there was an unfamiliar texture that was hard and rough. It was sticking out tall out of his head and he began to worry.

"You have horns, Lavi!" Lenalee didn't show any signs of loosening her grip. "I thought I was seeing things last night! But there is definitely something going on that you are not telling me about!"

"Um, I can explain!" Lavi knew Reever was behind this. _What kind of potion did he give me? Why are there horns on my head?_

He was wondering why Miranda didn't say anything to him. But he could imagine her excuse. _Sorry! Sorry! I just didn't want to insult you!_ She would most likely say.

"I know that you were the one who saved me from that avalanche!" Lenalee spouted out, making Lavi tense. "Although it looked like only a dream, I know it was real! And I know that you used Allen's anti-akuma weapon to do it!"

"W-What?! You saw me?!"

"That's why I came to this conclusion…" Lenalee pulled out the book called _How To Be More Like Your Best Friend _and displayed it in front of Lavi's face. "You took some kind of potion from my brother and now you are gradually transforming into Allen. The problem was that you didn't have a clue how to act like Allen. So you were reading this book so no one would gain suspiciousness. Though I have no idea why you have horns…"

_Aw Lenalee was so cute. _"You're almost correct…"

"I don't care anymore…" Lenalee was mumbling as if she didn't want anybody to hear. "…Brother-Sister Friendship or Romantic Terms, I don't care anymore! I just want Allen back! You must know something!"

Then Lavi's body began to glow a light similar to Miranda's from the halls. It was so bright that Lavi himself, the person who was glowing, couldn't see a thing. But Lavi couldn't figure out why he was transforming right now. It was probably lunchtime already but he was told that he would have an extra thirty minutes. _Did I get a potion entirely different! Reever, that bastard!_

The light's shape began to get shorter. A curse mark appeared on his face and his hair turned white again. Lenalee stared at the process dumbfounded and was surely about to faint. She left her feet and hurled towards the floor. The glowing figure raced over to catch her. "Lenalee!"

Lenalee opened her eyes and saw his face. The white hair, the voice, the mark; there was no mistaking it. "Allen?"

"Long time no see…" The boy with Allen's appearance gave a chuckle.

Lenalee was almost about to cry until she realized something. "No, are you really Allen? Or are you Lavi disguised as Allen? Tell me! I need to know!"

He seemed hesitant to give an answer because he wasn't sure if she'd believe him.

"Who are you?!"

He helped her up and gave her a smile. "It's me, Allen. It's always been me."

Lenalee finally understood the situation. Allen was transformed into Lavi and transformed back just now. All of the pieces were slowly coming together.

Lenalee pointed to his head. "Your horns are still there…"

Allen felt them on the top of his head and openly shared his grief whereas Lenalee giggled. She was starting to dry her tears and she was just happy that Allen was safe. It seems like it has been forever since she last saw him while it was only for about a week. Some missions take about a week and Lenalee has never been this worried about him before. "Allen?"

"Yeah?"

"Why didn't you tell me about this?" Lenalee was cautious because she wasn't sure if it was an okay thing to ask. "Why did you choose to make this a secret?"

"Well, um, he might not want you to know but…it was your brother that told me not to tell you."

**.:FLASHBACK:.**

"**Allen…" Komui began to snicker. "Or should I say…Lavi."**

"**Ah!" Allen was pinching himself to make sure this wasn't a dream. "What did you do to me?"**

"**I accidentally injected some of this transformation serum into you…" Komui held out the remaining purple liquid in the syringe. "Luckily, you didn't take all of it in at once. Or else it would've been permanent."**

**Allen choked on his breath when he saw how close he was to taking in all of the liquid. "How do you inject someone on accident? It was on purpose, admit it!"**

"**You better not tell anybody about this!" Komui was starting to look like an evil figure. Flames started to rage in the background for added effect. "Especially Lenalee. She just doesn't like it when I do these kinds of things, you know?"**

"**I understand." Allen was totally afraid and he wanted to run out of there as soon as possible.**

"**You better! Or else I'll have to tell Komurin to **_**kill**_** you!"**

"**O-Okay…"**

.::.

Upon hearing this story, Lenalee jumped back in laughter leaving Allen in embarrassment. "Don't worry Allen. My brother would never do that."

"Thanks." Allen sighed. "He did the same to Miranda and made her look like you."

"So I did see something in the mirror, I knew it!" Lenalee remembered back. "I'll have to punish him later." She laughed.

Then the two of them just started to laugh together joyously because the circumstances seemed so funny. They found out Komui has been the source of both their suffering but they were just relieved that this was all over.

Then Allen ceased his laughing to ask a question. "Lenalee, aren't you mad at me?"

"Hmm?" Lenalee ceased her laughing as well. "Well I haven't exactly been honest with you, either."

"Huh?"

Lenalee smiled. "Come on, let's go eat."

.::.

"A sister?" Allen managed to ask while stuffing his mouth with three kinds of main dishes compliments to Jerry. "What do you mean?"

Lenalee stayed silent for awhile. It was hard enough to ask the question the first time. If she was asked to repeat it again, it wouldn't be any easier. "You know…you said before that I was like a sister."

"I guess I did say that, didn't I?" Allen scratched his nose. "Well, how should I know? I never had a sister before so I just said anything. We're close, right? Isn't that how brothers and sisters _are_?"

"Not as close as me and Komui." Lenalee said gratefully. _I finally get what he was saying before about friendship and how it doesn't need a definition. Allen doesn't think about it too much. He just goes along with it. Maybe I should do the same. Who knows? Probably the Five Levels _are_ wrong. If they are…maybe it's never too late…to someday…be on Romantic Terms…_

"Ha, I guess you're right." Then Allen explained to Lenalee everything that was going on. About how Reever gave him a potion that gave him horns. About how he told her Allen was missing to stray her off from suspicion. And about the latter, in particular, being a huge mistake.

"It's hard to take you seriously with those horns on your head." Lenalee joked.

"Hey, can you stop with that?"

Lenalee continued to laugh. Then she wanted to confirm one more thing. "I get it now. So you read _How To Be More Like Your Best Friend_ because you wanted to act more like Lavi so no one would become suspicious of you disguised as Lavi?"

"_How To Be More Like Your Best Friend_?" Allen was confused at what she said. Seriously confused. "What's that? I haven't seen a book like that in my life."

Lenalee was shocked beyond belief. "No more jokes! Don't mess around with me anymore!"

"I'm not joking. I've never seen that book in my life." Allen was hoping Lenalee would believe him.

"That's weird. How can that be?" Lenalee mused. _Could it be…was it the real Lavi?_

"You said that you couldn't find _The Five Levels of Friendship_ in the library?" The mentioning of books reminded Allen of this. "I'm sure that I put it back there last night."

"But why do you have such dislike towards that book?" Lenalee asked. "I mean, you gave me all of that advice. Did you see that book somewhere before?"

"Actually the reason is…" Allen began to sweat. "…it was written by Master."

"General Cross?!" Lenalee immediately understood why Allen would hate that book so much. Written by a womanizer like Cross Marian, who mooches off his lovers for money and keeps a long distance from other exorcists, it's hard to believe he would know anything about friendship.

"But he's only half the reason that book is junk." Allen saying there was another reason surprised Lenalee and caught her attention. "You know how the book says all friendship must start with level one?"

"Yeah?"

"If that's true…" Allen leaned his head forward, resting his cheek on his knuckle. "…how would that explain love at first sight?"

**THE END**

First thing's first! Almost every reviewer got their predictions correct! Oh my gosh, did I make it that obvious?! OMG I hate you guys so much!

Just kidding! Just kidding!

In any case, I'll have to put 'Reviews may cause spoilers' on my summary. Thanks a lot guys...

I may have some of the answers to your questions that I may have written confusingly:

1) The red potion makes Allen revert back to the appearance of Lavi, but it also gives him horns.

2) Miranda took the remains of Allen's transformation potion so that's why she was only affected for a short time.

Well that's all I have to say. Don't forget to check out the bonus chapter I put up after this one.

If there something I forgot to say? What was it again? Oh yeah...I thank and salute thee!


	5. Reviews & Bonus

**!!!WARNING!!!: THIS IS THE BONUS CHAPTER! GO BACK AND READ CHAPTER 4 IF YOU HADN'T ALREADY DONE SO.**

**_This is the bonus chapter that includes chapter reviews and a hidden scene featuring Lavi! Think of it like a scene after the credits in a movie._**

**Review Responses**

Mfinga19: Thank you for the reviews. You were also the first one whoohoo! You were wondering who she'll end up with, but she didn't end up with anybody. I hope I didn't disappoint you. I like stories that only hint romance but it is a romance all in the same. I am a fan of both LavixLenalee and AllenxLenalee but I lean more (by a lot) towards AllenxLenalee. It's obvious that Lavi like her though isn't it? :D I think that Lenalee and Allen is the only two-sided pairing in the manga, while other one-sided pairings include Lavi liking Lenalee and Road liking Allen.

Akahey: How did you like the ending Akahey. I appreciate that you reviewed all my chapters. You were the first one to say Lavi was really Allen. So that means I'm angry at you the most, just kidding! Anyways, I hope I can further entertain in the future with more possible fanfics.

Kame-tan: Thank you for the reviews! You haven't reviewed chapter 3 so I'm not sure how you feel about the ending because chapter 3 is where everything dractically changes. But I appreciate that you took your time reading and reviewing.

Tiapastelera: Thank you for reviewing! I appreciate and hope you enjoyed yourself reading my stuff.

Sakra-chan: Thank you for reviewing. I like you avatar :). I don't really know what else to say. My response to Mfinga kind of applies to everyone.

Waterlit: You were another person who reviewed all my chapters. Thank you! I hope that the ending was satisfactory. I hope all the confusing stuff were cleared up too :)

Chocolate and Caramel: Thank you for the reviews. Yeah, I don't really like angst but a little couldn't hurt. But isn't that the definition of angst o_o

Addenza: Thank you. I hope you liked the ending. How did you feel about Cross writing the book? Thank you for the good luck for school, it was really nice.

ExorcistYuKanda: I meant to reply back to you as soon as you commented. I'm sorry. Thank you for reviewing for my request. I hope that you liked it. When you mentioned Lavi looking through Allen's stuff was a good one because I hadn't thought of that.

Heavenly-Tears37: You're guess wasn't too wild, huh? Nice prediction. Everyone else had a similar theory. I hope I was still able to surprise you on some points. And your name is Lena Lee? That's pretty cool.

Divadcreator: You were the only one to predict the writer of the book! I applaud you! But you also spoiled the secret! *shakes fist at you* just kidding! just kidding! Thank you so much for reviewing!

UNTensaZangetsu: Cool predictions you had! You were the only one to predict Lavi transforming into Allen. In fact, I wanted people to think that Lavi was tranforming into Allen whereas it would actually be the other way around. But everybody ended up with the right prediction -_-

Midnight Hikari: Thank you for reviewing! I wasn't sure if I wanted to include the real Lavi because I wanted this to be simple as possible. But this bonus page contains the real Lavi so I hope you especially will enjoy it. It's not much but I think it's pretty good.

**Bonus Scene**

Lavi, the real Lavi, walked over to the gondola with something in his hands striking the curiousness of the Finder that was going to accompany him on a mission.

"Did you find it?"

Lavi slowly shook his head, looking miffed. "Nah. I thought it would be in the library but I was wrong."

"Did you search the shelves alphabetically?"

"Of course." Lavi stepped onto the gondola and the Finder starting to row with this large wooden pole. "I wonder who could've taken it. Who else would want a book called _How To Be More Like Your Best Friend_?"

"You have weird taste…" The Finder tried to joke around with him in an attempt to cheer him up. It was apparently working. "What do you have in your hands then?"

"Oh…" Lavi looked at the cover again to see what it was called. "_The Five Levels of Friendship_."

"That's another weird book, ha."

"Yeah, I guess." Lavi examined it once more. "This book and the book I was looking for were supposed to be placed next to each other in alphabetical order. So I just thought I should check it out."

He opened the book and saw the diagram that gave a summary for each level of friendship. He skimmed through the descriptions and saw something unexpected. His name was written in blue ink next to the Complimentary Terms section. Lavi noticed it was only one level below Romantic Terms and wondered who it could have written it.

"Wait a minute, this is Lenalee's handwriting!" Lavi was familiar with the way she wrote and it matched perfectly.

"This looks like a bunch of baloney. I didn't know romance was just a higher level of friendship." The Finder peeked over Lavi's head and addressed his thoughts. "Lavi, is there someone you like?"

"Probably…" Lavi's response confused the Finder. "…but I think her sights are set on someone else."

At that moment, Lavi hurled the book as far as he could throw into the water. The book made such a tiny splash that they couldn't even spot where it landed.

"Why did you throw it like that? Isn't that property of the Order?" The Finder was worried if he had to take responsibility.

But Lavi just smiled. "You're right. It's just a bunch of baloney."


End file.
